Ata mārie and welcome to your Friday recap of international business and political news.
First up, the European Union proposed to remove trade tariffs on US industrial goods to ensure lower automotive tariffs for vehicles manufactured in the EU, CNBC reported.
The European Commission, the executive arm of the EU, said the removal of duties on US industrial goods, along with providing “preferential market access” for some US seafood and agricultural goods, would ensure tariff relief by the US.
It said that would be vital for the EU’s automotive sector, with retrospective action from the beginning of this month.
“These steps contribute to restoring stability and predictability in EU-US trade and investment relations, to the benefit of business, workers and citizens on both sides of the Atlantic.”
The proposal still needed to be approved by the European Parliament, CNBC noted.
US President Donald Trump.
In Ukraine, Russia launched another large aerial attack, with at least 21 people killed, including four children in Kyiv, CNN reported.
European Union and British Council buildings were damaged in the strikes.
Russia launched more than 600 air attack weapons on the country, with 598 drones and 31 missiles, Ukraine claimed.
Meanwhile, a meeting between Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin was unlikely to happen, according to German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, Bloomberg reported.
The White House had previously said it believed Putin had agreed to a meeting with Zelensky. Earlier this week, US President Donald Trump suggested Putin’s dislike of Zelensky was a handbrake on an official meeting.
Elsewhere, France, Germany, and the UK, triggered a mechanism to reimpose sanctions on Iran after failure to reach agreement on the Iranian nuclear programme, Al Jazeera reported.
The three countries had warned Iran that sanctions could be reimposed by October when a nuclear agreement expired.
Federal Reserve governor Lisa Cook confirmed a lawsuit had been filed against Trump over his “unprecedented and illegal attempt” to fire her, the Guardian reported.
The lawsuit was filed by Cook in Washington on Thursday local time. A hearing for the case is expected on Friday morning local time.
Trump tried to dismiss Cook this week, “effective immediately”, over an unconfirmed allegation that she had obtained a mortgage on a second home she incorrectly described as her primary residence, the Guardian said.
Cook’s lawyer said Trump’s actions could cause “irreparable harm” to the US economy, Bloomberg reported.
“The short-term political interests of a president often clash with sound monetary policy,” Abbe Lowell wrote in the court filing.
“A politically insulated Board of Governors can make appropriate, albeit unpopular, decisions — such as raising interest rates to combat inflation — that are crucial for the nation’s long-term financial health.”
Former UK PM Liz Truss.
Former UK Prime Minister Liz Truss backed Trump’s fight with the Federal Reserve, the Guardian noted.
“I think the Bank of England needs to be accountable to politicians,” Truss told Bloomberg. ”I think the current system doesn’t work. This is why I’m very sympathetic to what Donald Trump is saying about the Fed.”
Meanwhile, the US economy expanded at a faster pace than expected in the June quarter as consumers and businesses held up against tariff volatility, CNBC reported.
Gross domestic product rose at a 3.3% annual pace, better than an initial 3% estimate, helped by higher consumer spending.
Elsewhere, Tesla sales fell again in Europe in July as buyers continued to snap up Chinese rivals, CNN reported.
Elon Musk’s Tesla sold 6600 vehicles in the EU in July, down 42% from the same month last year, according to the European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association. In the first seven months of 2025, Tesla sold about 77,000 cars in the EU, down from 137,000 last year.
Meanwhile, Chinese rival BYD sold 9698 models in July in Europe.
On Wall Street, the S&P 500 made fresh gains as investors assessed Nvidia’s earnings results and forecasts, CNBC reported.
As earlier reported, Nvidia beat Wall Street’s estimates with revenue growth of 56%.
